


Past Wounds Are Healed

by RoyaiFan101



Series: Victory [17]
Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: F/M, Mentions of past child abuse, Royai - Freeform, Royai baby, a different look on how Riza got the secrets of Flame Alchemy placed on her back, mentions of Berthold Hawkeye - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-01
Updated: 2020-12-01
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:33:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27804616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RoyaiFan101/pseuds/RoyaiFan101
Summary: Riza takes the advice Jean suggested to her months prior and requests the help of Dr. Marcoh. And doing so reveals a dark secret that Roy himself doesn’t even know.She intends to keep it that way.
Relationships: Roy Mustang/Riza Hawkeye
Series: Victory [17]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1674847
Kudos: 27





	Past Wounds Are Healed

“Are you _sure_ you’ll be okay while I’m dealing with the meeting with Grumman in Central?” Roy asked, packing his overnight bag.

“Yes! You’ll only be gone for _two days_ , and I’m not due for six more weeks. Quit worrying so much.” Riza reassured him, wrapping her arms around him as best as she could.

Which, truth be told, wasn’t very well due to being seven months pregnant.

“Besides, I have the guys to babysit me and Becca to keep me company.”

“Not _all_ of them.” He reminded her.

“Okay, yeah, Breda is going with you. Personally, I think you should be bringing Havoc, but whatever. Your choice.” Riza shrugged.

“I’d rather Havoc stay here and watch _you_. You’re not as limber as you were six months ago.” He sighed, resting his hand on her belly.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” She huffed, smiling at him as their baby kicked his palm.

“Hey, do you want me to take _you-know-who_? Grumman would love to see her again, and Christmas can watch her during the meeting.” Roy asked her.

Riza thought about it for a moment. Him taking Sophia _would_ be a big help for her.

“Sure. I’ll go pack a bag for her. She’ll be so _excited_ to get to go with you.”

* * *

An hour after Roy and an excited Sophia got into the truck to drive to the nearest train station, Riza walked up to Jean, who was busy sweeping the front porch of he and Becca’s temporary Ishvallan home.

“Havoc.”

“Hey, Reez. What’s up?”

“Is Becca here?”

“Nope. She went to the market to go shopping. Something about wanting to try some funny looking fruit. You just missed her, too.” Jean explained, a toothpick in his mouth.

“Oh good. Actually wanted to talk to _you_ in private.” Riza honesty surprised him.

“Really? Bout what?”

“Do you remember what we talked in the elevator a few months back?”

“You mean your extremely vague description of your crappy childhood?”

“Yes. I need you to distract Becca and Fuery long enough for me to see if Dr. Marcoh can do what you suggested.” Riza informed him.

Jean’s eyebrows shot up, before he quickly glanced down at her stomach. “Does the Chief know about this?”

“Hell _no_. Why do you think I waited for him to _leave_ before doing this.” Riza scoffed.

“I don’t get it, Riza. Why didn’t you want him to be here when Dr. Marcoh fixes whatever it is your old man did to your back? He’s obviously seen it, you’re almost done cooking kid number two. What’s the big deal?” Jean asked.

“I don’t want him knowing _how_ it happened. And I can’t guarantee Marcoh won’t ask. It’s bad enough he knows the _when_ and the _why.” Riza sighed, crossing her arms._

“What’s the why...?” Jean asked, swallowing the lump in his throat.

“Because he could. So will you distract them?” She asked.

Jean shook off the look of horror on his face, before grinning at her. “Sure, can’t promise for how long though.” He said.

“I think an hour should get rid of most, if not all of it. Thank you so much!” Riza sighed.

Now all she had to do is see if Marcoh could or would even help her.

* * *

She found Dr. Marcoh in his home, waving goodbye to a little Ishvallan boy and his grandmother, having just helped at least one of them out.

“Miss. Riza! How are you?” He grinned, as she walked up to him.

“Good. Are you busy?” Riza asked.

“Nope, Davi and his grandmother, Yalissa, were my last patients for the rest of the afternoon. Why? Everything okay?” He asked.

“Yes. I need your... help, involving a certain stone.” Riza told him.

Marcoh looked at her, before nodding. “Come on in.” He muttered, as he moved aside and allowed her to enter.

“So what is it?” He asked, shutting the door. Riza ignored him, pulling the curtains on all of his windows closed.

“Riza?”

“Before I tell- err, show- you what it is, you have to understand a few things. One, you’re going to recognize it. And your first reaction will be of anger. Which is understandable. But you _need_ to know that who you’ll get angry at is the wrong person.” Riza explained.

“I see. And _who_ is it that I should be angry at?”

“My Alchemist of a Father.”

And with that, Riza turned around, lifted her shirt up over her head, and showed Marcoh her back, scars and all.

“Oh... my. This is-“

“Yep.” Riza clicked her tongue.

“How old were you when it happened?”

“Twelve.”

“Is this a _tattoo_?”

“No. But _you-know-who_ thinks that it is. And he is to _never_ know otherwise.” Riza sighed.

“I’ll get rid as much of it as I can. Any particular area you want me to start with first?”

“The main part. I can and will live with the burn marks if I have to. But I want the rest to be gone.”

“Understood. Get comfortable. I need to get the stone.” Marcoh instructed, pointing to the dinning room chairs for Riza to sit.

While she waited, her mind began to wander, thinking back to how she got the secrets of Flame Alchemy engraved into her flesh.

_”Be very still, Riza. I don’t need you jumping or flinching, and messing up my life’s work.” Berthold hissed into her ear, placing a rag into her mouth for her to bite down on._

_She was strapped down, laying on a quilt on top of the work table in their home’s basement, completely naked from the waist up. Roy has left for his sister, Adelaide’s, funeral the day before._

_She wished he was here. They weren’t super close, but he was nice. He would never let her Father do this to her. He respects him- but not that much._

_Riza squeezed her eyes shut as she listened to the sounds of her father sticking the iron rod into the fire, heard him whistling as he waited for it to get hot enough to do what he needed it to do. She fought back tears as he walked back towards her._

_And when the hot end of the iron rod touched her skin, branding her with her father’s research, she kept completely still as she screamed into the rag._

“Riza?”

Her head shot up and she jumped, turning to face him. “Sorry, I zoned out. Everything okay?” She apologized.

“I’m done.”

Her brown eyes went wide. Had she been in her own little world for _that_ long?

”Really? All of it?”

”Mmhmm. Took up most of the stone’s power. Which is good. The more it gets used, the more souls are freed, and the sooner it’ll break.” Marcoh told her.

“The bathroom is over there.” He said, pointing to a small door on the other side of the room.

Riza got up, covering her breasts with her arm, and walked to the bathroom. She flipped the light on, turned around, and glanced over her shoulder.

What she saw brought tears to her eyes. Her back was smooth, bare, and complete void of the wounds her father had forced upon her and the ones she had begged Roy to give her. Her wish of being free of her father’s burden, of ridding the world of the secrets of flame Alchemy were finally met.

She was _free_. She was _finally free_.

”Thank you.” She gasped, fixing her shirt. “Thank you so much.”

**Author's Note:**

> The idea of Riza having been _branded_ instead of simply _tattooed_ was inspired by a post on Tumblr suggesting it because the notes are red instead of black, and red ink didn’t really exist back in the early 1900’s.
> 
> Sadly, it has been so long since I saw the post (close to a year, back when I didn’t really have a tumblr and was just using my youngest sisters to look at Royai fan art) I don’t remember who the creator was. And because I only use tumblr on mobile, I have no way of knowing exactly how old the post is or even if it still exists.
> 
> If any of y’all find it/recognize it too, please let me know so I can link it at the bottom of this A/N and reblog it on my tumblr.


End file.
